The Impact of Anesthesia Management on Hospital Accreditation
Virtually every hospital accreditation requires a confirmation of the anesthesia team’s compliance. Maintaining accreditation requires an effective anesthesia management strategy. After all, few departments are as central to every hospital’s operations as the anesthesia team.
Anesthesia Requirements for Hospital Accreditation
The Joint Commission and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services set specific standards for the anesthesia providers at accredited facilities to follow. These standards ensure a certain level of patient care and safety; failing to meet them can have multiple negative consequences. A hospital that doesn’t maintain compliance with anesthesia standards might face fines, malpractice lawsuits—and potentially even issues with its accreditation standing.
The Challenges of Overseeing Anesthesia Compliance
As important as compliance is, it’s not necessarily easy to do. Anesthesia departments are primarily staffed with providers skilled in patient care but not necessarily in the intricacies of monitoring regulations and reports.A hospital’s staff knows how to monitor regulations and reports, but the anesthesia department is one of many to oversee. Smaller hospitals might not have an administrative staff specifically knowledgeable in anesthesia compliance, and staff at large hospitals might already be busy with other compliance monitoring.
Finding a Solution with Anesthesia Management Experts
One of the most practical solutions is for hospitals to work with anesthesia management consultants. These experts work with hospitals and other healthcare facilities, focusing on anesthesia compliance requirements, monitoring and best practices.
Working with a consultant team allows hospitals to maintain a high level of compliance without devoting internal staff only to this part of accreditation. Consultants are familiar with accreditation standards (and the many other anesthesia regulations) and can guide hospitals on becoming or maintaining compliance. Regardless of size, every hospital can access the most knowledgeable sources on this part of accreditation.
The Benefits of Working with Anesthesia Management Consultants
The benefits of working with anesthesia management consultants are multifold. A consultant who’s worked with anesthesia staff at different medical facilities brings:
- Knowledge of the most current compliance regulations
- Familiarity with anesthesia and accrediting requirements
- Awareness of best practices in anesthesia management
- Expertise in monitoring and reporting
- Assistance with ongoing monitoring
- Experience when addressing potential issues
In addition to helping with accreditation in these ways, bringing in a consultant to handle anesthesia management can improve patient experiences, streamline operational efficiencies and ultimately decrease a hospital’s expenses through better efficiencies.
A Collaborative Approach
To make working with a consultant as effective as possible, consultants communicate regularly with hospital leadership, executives, administrators and all anesthesia department staff.
This collaborative approach ensures that hospital leadership and staff are informed without requiring them to monitor KPIs personally. They save time but stay informed. They also have a guide should an issue that needs attention arise.
Improve Your Hospital’s Anesthesia Management
If your hospital is going through an accreditation process, whether new or renewing, you can benefit from the expertise that an anesthesia management consultant brings. You, your leadership and your staff have many things to attend to. Leave the anesthesia compliance and monitoring to an expert in this field so you can focus on the many other aspects of accrediting.
Contact us at CCI Anesthesia today to speak with a team of anesthesia management consultants.